Monday, October 24, 2011

I knew it would happen. Someone bit a big chunk out of my five star rating for Goals for a Sinner by giving it a one. The Romance Studio awarded those five stars and others followed, and no, not all reveiwers were my relatives as this person implied. I have noted those giving the most savage reviews generally hide behind a weird screen name. That's okay. I don't plan to hunt you down. In most cases, these folks begin with "I thought I'd found a fabulous new writer..." and obviously they were severely disappointed. So sorry. I do not believe a five star rating means I am fantastic. I feel it indicates that the particular book met all the criterion for a nice little romance-good characters, a plot that moves right along, and a happy ending.

Her major gripe seemed to be that the characters had misunderstandings and sometimes acted immaturely. Well, honey, if they were perfect from the start, there would be no plot, no crisis, nothing to overcome, no growth of the individuals. She didn't like my sex scenes either. To each his own. Mine tend to be more real than many and are often funny. Couples get interrupted by phone calls, don't disrobe gracefully and sometimes not at all. If you want fantastic, multiple orgasm sex right from the start, go elsewhere, dear reader, and enjoy what you find.

As for saying no girl would think of others on her wedding day, I'm afraid I based Stevie Dowd's attitude on my own. I find long receptions tedious and simply wanted to leave and be with my new husband. Instead of having a garter toss, I sent my blue garter directly to a guy dating one of my friends. I thought he needed a nudge. As for Stevie, she'd like to see quarterback Joe Dean married off so he won't lead her man into temptation and does try to set him up on her big day.

Having explained myself, I now want to say I am not all that upset by having my star diminished.

A five star rating makes you a target. I've heard sometimes jealous writers intentionally give a bad review to knock another writer off a top listing. I don't think that is the case here as my rankings aren't that high. So, like that getting that first scratch on a new car, I am somewhat relieved to have it overwith. May the disgruntled reviewer find fantastic elswhere.